author interview | Coram Mundo

This week I had the pleasure of interviewing the author of The Soul of Samuel. Caleb is a great thinker, communicator, and writer. He’s also a wonderful husband and dad, but I’ll spare you that digression. Last year, Caleb self-published The Soul of Samuel. If you love fiction that stimulates both the imagination and theological reflection, this is a great read. And if you’re the type of person who struggles to finish books, you’ll be pleased to know that the entire story can be read in one sitting. Before we get into the interview, here’s the synopsis from the back cover:

Heaven and hell are locked in combat over one soul on earth. Samuel Fendrich is a good Christian, but he doubts the sincerity of his own faith and whether he is saved. A brief but powerful read, “The Soul of Samuel” chronicles the fate of a young man desperate to find peace with God.

Delie Hoverson: How did the idea of The Soul of Samuel come about?

Caleb Hoverson: I was in a Creative Writing class at Patrick Henry College, and we were assigned to write three major projects for it. So I mulled over a couple different ideas, and the idea that captured my own imagination the most is what turned into The Soul of Samuel. I figured, “If I get bored with my own story, it may not be worth the reader’s consideration.” That is just my amateur opinion.

DH: What genre would you say The Soul of Samuel belongs in?

CH: I would call it a blend of fantasy, spiritual warfare, and what you would typically consider Christian fiction (drama).

DH: The story’s tension comes largely from the protagonist doubting his own salvation. From your experience, do you think this is a common struggle for Christians?

CH: I think so. Someone I shared this with confirmed this, saying that it seems especially common in pre-teens. That is when I struggled the most with my own doubts about salvation. It was a deep, personal struggle to be enough for God, and I still struggle with elements of that. However, it has helped tremendously to know that salvation is not about what I do for God, but what He has done for me, especially in my baptism. I have also met other teens and young adults who struggle with this question, so I think it is a common struggle.

DH: Did you write The Soul of Samuel with a particular audience in mind? Who do you think would most benefit from or enjoy this book?

CH: Well as the beginning of the book says, it is dedicated to every Christian who has doubted his or her salvation. So that is an audience that has a special place in my mind and heart. Ever since I went through that struggle myself, I have had a deep desire to help others in facing similar things in any way I can. But my hope is that it will be encouraging to many other believers too, including those who have never struggled with assurance or only occasionally.

DH: You take a lot of creative license in describing the spiritual realm and angelic beings. Where did you get your inspiration for those features of the story?

CH: I am not really sure. I know that part of it was fiction I had heard about that deals with spiritual warfare. Part of the inspiration for the book was the idea of a story that would invert the spiritual warfare trope I had heard about. Instead of writing about angels and demons among us on earth, I could try focusing on angelic and demonic warfare in the heavenly realms. That may be where some of the creative license comes in, as humans probably can’t go there, except to be judged and ushered into their eternal destiny.

DH: Instead of typical chapter headings, the story is structured around the liturgy of the Divine Service. Why? Did you know you wanted to use that structure when you started writing The Soul of Samuel?

CH: I did not know that I was going to structure it that way, and honestly it was kind of a last minute thought. However, I tried to intentionally match the theme of each chapter with a part of the liturgy appropriate to that chapter’s theme. So, for example, the chapter entitled Kyrie (which is when the congregants sing “Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy; Lord, have mercy”) is when Samuel is praying to God in despair over the state of his soul.

DH: What’s next? Do you have plans for other creative ventures in the future?

CH: I am trying to work on illustrating Luther’s Small and Large Catechisms by a story, or even a series of songs. My pipe dream for a while has been to write a Lutheran epic, either like Divine Comedy and Paradise Lost, or The Lord of the Rings. Like I said, a pipe dream. Plus, I am also always working on writing new songs and at least ideas for stories. The latter take a lot longer for me to put onto paper than the songs. I may end up putting my songs onto a YouTube channel and/or my poetry into another book.